"The official Facebook announcement for the Mary Oliver Shop dropped on April 1, fitting for something that feels like an April Fool’s joke. “Created with care and intention, this storefront gives fans and readers a way to carry Mary’s words out into the world.”...
"Mary Oliver is one of the best-selling poets of all time—whatever that means. She and her estate likely haven’t made evil-billionaire money by selling poetry collections but surely that means something. I doubt her close friends have nefarious motives for selling a tote bag that says “If you suddenly and unexpectedly feel joy, don’t hesitate.” But if this store isn’t a cash grab than that means it’s something else.
"Mary Oliver died without becoming a brand and yet became one anyway and maybe that’s inevitable. Maybe we don’t know how to love anything anymore without turning it into something commercial. Maybe we don’t know how to admire a person without turning them into a one-dimensional persona either: a collection of quotations devoid of context, a bumper sticker, an inspiration.' "
by Tove Danovich - in Substack article May 8, 2025 -"Mary Oliver has a store now: Let the soft animal of your brand shill what it shills"
"...it’s fair to say that nothing that the House does right now—whether it’s deep cuts to Medicaid and SNAP benefits, the canceling of green energy projects, or blowing a huge hole in the deficit yet again—really matters in the end. The Senate is going to change this Big Beautiful Bill, and probably by a lot."
